A Model 16X story - Printable Version
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RE: A Model 16X story - EdHolland - 01-15-2018
Thanks morz,
That is exactly what I thought. Anything that was obviously a flagship product, and has survived (mostly) intact deserves attention. The sheer number and size of components on the chassis tell you this was a serious product in its day.
Next steps are to do an R.F. alignment, although broadcast band was working very well already. The shadow meter worked wonderfully - worth rewinding the coil! It was hard to judge sound quality with the speaker face down on the bench, resting on a couple of wooden blocks (So I could test the wiring one last time), but I could hear good highs and lows, and response to the tone control switch. And my goodness, this thing will go loud!
Ed
RE: A Model 16X story - morzh - 01-15-2018
usually even on the bench you could judge the quality potential, as the highs / lows will be heard.
When I heard the 37-116 while still on the table I immediately knew that once in the cabinet, it will blow the rest of my consoles away.
Same was with Zenith Spinet: the bass it had on the table immediately told me that once in the cabinet it will be booming, and so it was, to the point of me having to suppress it - too much.
RE: A Model 16X story - EdHolland - 01-17-2018
Well, this project was all the excuse I needed to buy a signal generator. Not sure how I have managed without, but this and the next radio in the queue will benefit
RE: A Model 16X story - EdHolland - 01-19-2018
OK - my signal generator is in. I had a quick play last night and it seems decent - certainly good enough for the job at hand. One nice feature is simultaneous outputs at two frequencies - it is then easy to switch between them, which will be good for the upper and lower band adjustments.
Off to the Hardware store tomorrow to find the nylon socket cap screw I need to make a trimming tool.
RE: A Model 16X story - EdHolland - 01-20-2018
No suitable screws at the hardware store. I molded the barrel of a ballpoint pen (an idea from the technical section) around a 1/4 hex drive from a ratchet screwdriver set. On the other end, I press fitted a round wooden knob from the box of random things on the garage shelves. In a box of bits from ebay, there is a trimmer, so the tool could be tested out. Hopefully a chance tomorrow to have some fun adjusting.
RE: A Model 16X story - 462ron - 01-21-2018
Ed, what model and brand of SG with dual frequency outputs did you get?
Ron
RE: A Model 16X story - EdHolland - 01-21-2018
Ron, It is the "KKMoon" brand that can be purchased on Amazon for around $60. I used it today to align the 16X, and it made a good job of that, once I had become familiar with the controls. It is a bit noisy - creating a bit of out of band "hash" that could be heard when tuned away from the generator frequencies. For this work, it doesn't matter. O/P voltage can be adjusted from 5mV to 20 V over two ranges - this is a separate setting.
Anyway, the 16X has seen a first pass at alignment. It was pretty close, but did benefit from the procedure to get the dial reading accurately, and get the last ounce of signal. It also verified that all the bands are working. Reattaching the dial beforehand, I realised there was no procedure for how to set the dial to the tuning cap, so chose to set the cap at full mesh and align dial so the lower limit line coincided with the shadow pointer. That seems to be a good method.
I left the set on for a good while during and after the alignment and it was working beautifully. With the speaker turned right side up on the bench and facing me, music had very good depth and presence, and voice programmes were very clear. We almost forgot we were listening to AM!
Next: make a reproduction "Echo absorbing screen" back and reassemble into the cabinet.
RE: A Model 16X story - 462ron - 01-22-2018
Thanks Ed. Looks like a nice unit. Never heard of a dual frequency output generator, I'm old school. Should be a handy feature. I like that it has a digital readout! I use an old Heathkit that my dad used in the late 50s along with a frequency counter to keep it accurate!
Ron
RE: A Model 16X story - EdHolland - 04-02-2018
I thought a few pictures were appropriate, now that I have the chassis back in the cabinet, and the newly made back in place:
Please excuse the (resized) image quality.
I am very happy with how this turned out, not least because she receives and plays wonderfully after a desperate and very involved rescue bid!
Ed
RE: A Model 16X story - gregb - 04-02-2018
Love it Ed, Looks great!
Greg B